My first guppy tank

[Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics]

After taking down my first planted tank I decided with this one I wanted it to be easier to take care of and more focused on taking care/ enjoying my fish.

So I decided to go low tech instead of high tech like my last tank and I've gotta say I prefer lowtech much more, it just seems more natural and I feel more engaged with tank and that I notice every little change making me feel like I understand my tank and the ecosystem that it is much more.

The fish I decided to go with are guppies because I wanted something that I could easily breed and I hear so many people say good things about them. Now I understand why because I think they are my new favorite fish! They are just really cute and colorful and the are so much fun to watch and feed plus they breed easily, that's a win, win, win, win, win.

This is the tank, its a 1 month old 10 gallon with crypts, anubias and hornwort. I'm using the new co op light and its growing everything really well! I still am not done with how I want it to look because I want to get a black background and I want the plants to fill in more.

The plants are growing really well and surprisingly fast (for slow growers) in my opinion but I do have some hair algae. I've Dialed the lights down, removed as much manually and started dosing some liquid fertilizer and that has made it almost completely stop growing but I still do have some so I'll probably get some amano shrimp to eat it.

As for inhabitants I picked up 2 male and 4 female guppies from a local guy for 2$ a piece, He also gave me a sandwich bag full of hornwort for 5$ so I would say that's a pretty good deal for fish that have been raised in my tap water and are guaranteed to be disease free. I also have a goby that I've had for a long time living with them and some pest snails. I've really come to appreciate the "pest" snails in this tank because Ive really noticed how well they eat the converting crypt leaves and algae on the glass.

THEY HAD BABIES! after only a week of having these guppies they had fry! I'm really excited about this and if you have any tips on raising them I'd really appreciate it.

I'll probably update this as the tank changes but if you have and tips or recommendations id love to hear them also one question for everybody, should I get a couple more gobies so my goby has some company? because I'm pretty sure they are fry safe.

Also if you have any questions about the tank please leave them below. 🙂

 

Edited May 1 by Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics

[Guppysnail]

Congratulations on your babies 🎉

Guppies are so fun and carefree. I wish you the best of success!

[TOtrees]

Feeding guppy babies is easy. Clearly you're supporting the coop brand despite how much harder it is up here in Canadia; I highly recommend their fry food, which I was surprised to see on April's site over the weekend. I love the ease of feeding, and the diversity of food particle sizes (but nothing larger than say 0.5mm). So there is plenty of powder for the baby babies, and some larger particles for the parents. And invariably enough will settle to the bottom for the goby dude. 

In general, I would recommend that you focus on feeding the fry, and trust that the adults will get what they need. 

[Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics]

I don’t think I’ll use the fry food right now because it cost a lot to ship and I would prefer to order some when I do a big order so I get free shipping, I don’t really need anything right now so I’ll wait to try it when I need more stuff like a new light. I can get good foods right near me from my lfs.
Do you think crushing up the xtreme flakes I got will be fine?

Edited May 1 by Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics

[Guppysnail]

On 5/1/2023 at 3:16 PM, Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics said:

Do you think crushing up the xtreme flakes I got will be fine?

This is perfect for guppy fry. I’ve done this exact thing with great results. Guppies are the King Kong vacuum cleaners of the fish fry world. As long as it’s nutritious and fits in their mouth you are good to go. 

[TOtrees]

On 5/1/2023 at 3:16 PM, Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics said:

I don’t think I’ll use the fry food right now because it cost a lot to ship and I would prefer to order some when I do a big order so I get free shipping, I don’t really need anything right now so I’ll wait to try it when I need more stuff like a new light. I can get good foods right near me from my lfs.
Do you think crushing up the xtreme flakes I got will be fine?

My guppies and guppy babies LOVE the xtreme flake, and it powders/pulverizes really well in my fingertips. So yes! 

Actually, everyone loves the xtreme flake. And I find it sinks better than any other flake i've used, so you don't end up with tons of uneaten food left on top, if all you have are cories or etc. 

[Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics]

On 5/1/2023 at 1:30 PM, Guppysnail said:

This is perfect for guppy fry. I’ve done this exact thing with great results. Guppies are the King Kong vacuum cleaners of the fish fry world. As long as it’s nutritious and fits in their mouth you are good to go. 

That’s what I’ve noticed since keeping them😄

On 5/1/2023 at 1:33 PM, TOtrees said:

My guppies and guppy babies LOVE the xtreme flake, and it powders/pulverizes really well in my fingertips. So yes! 

Actually, everyone loves the xtreme flake. And I find it sinks better than any other flake i've used, so you don't end up with tons of uneaten food left on top, if all you have are cories or etc. 

yeah I haven’t had any of it get left to rot away even my stiphodon goby likes it and he normally just eats algae, biofilm and other micro things 

[Allan]

I don't do anything for my Endler fry.  They eat the scraps of what the adults rip up.